One of the losses suffered by the UFC 149 card turned out to be Shawn Jordan’s gain.

And if things go the way he thinks they might go on Saturday, it could be the fans’ gain, as well – even if most of them don’t realize it yet.

Jordan (13-3 MMA, 1-0 UFC) meets Cheick Kongo (17-7-2 MMA, 10-5-1 UFC) on UFC 149’s main card in a heavyweight tilt that Jordan believes could make fans forget they were supposed to see Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira – not him.

“This is still going to be a great card,” Jordan on Monday told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio). “I understand – fans get upset. There were big names on the card. But the nature of the sport is, people get injured. You’ve got to be training hard to fight hard.

“I’m really excited about (fighting Kongo). Both of us are big, heavy-handed heavyweights. It only takes one punch to end these fights.”

A month ago, Jordan was tapped to step in for Nogueira to take on Kongo on the pay-per-view in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. A short-notice fight is seldom ideal. Against a veteran like Kongo, for some fighters, it could be a recipe for disaster.

But for Jordan, a former college football standout as a fullback at Louisiana State University, he believes his training with the Greg Jackson/Mike Winkeljohn team will pay dividends.

“I think what benefited me being in Jackson’s camp is we have great training partners, regardless of who we’re fighting,” Jordan said. “I have (UFC heavyweight) Travis Browne I train with every day, whether it’s my camp or his camp. I think having guys like that to train with daily is a huge advantage when you get short-notice fights. It helps you adapt to whoever your opponent is. But I’m sure Cheick Kongo, in his camp, has similar attributes.”

A win over the likes of Kongo smack-dab in the middle of a UFC pay-per-view – especially one fans have decried for the man stars who have been attached to it and fallen off of – could see Jordan’s star rise quickly.

The four-fight Bellator veteran and two-fight Strikeforce vet debuted with the UFC in March and scored a second-round TKO of Oli Thompson in Australia not long after migrating over with some of Strikeforce’s other heavyweights.

It’s an opportunity that wasn’t lost on Jordan, who hopes to make the most of it against Kongo.

“Getting moved over to the UFC, that’s where all of us want to be anyway,” Jordan said. “I feel very lucky I got the opportunity to move over, because they didn’t move all the heavyweights over. I did well in my first fight and I’ve got a chance to compete again.”

Jordan, who is in a dead-heat with Kongo as far as oddsmakers are concerned, said his training at Jackson’s has him ready for any part of Kongo’s game – from his standup prowess to his clinch game to his ability to take opponents down and work them on the ground.

“I’m ready for and have been training for all of it,” Jordan said. “I’m good with whatever Cheick Kongo wants to bring to the table. I’m ready to compete, and I have some stuff I’ll bring to the table, too.

“He’s fought everybody in the sport, so I’m sure he’s going to be a guy who’s a little more savvy. And that’s another part of having great training partners that are able to do that so they know what you’re doing and you work harder.”

UFC 149 takes place Saturday at Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary. The main card airs on pay-per-view; FX and Facebook air preliminary-card fights. The main event is an interim bantamweight title fight between Urijah Faber and Renan Barao.

MMAjunkie.com Radio broadcasts Monday-Friday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) live from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino’s Race & Sports Book. The show is hosted by “Gorgeous” George Garcia, MMAjunkie.com lead staff reporter John Morgan and producer Brian “Goze” Garcia. For more information or to download past episodes, go to www.mmajunkie.com/radio.

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